Formation and measurement of tapers in optical fibers

Abstract

A simple fabrication method is described which is capable of producing physically repeatable biconical tapers in optical fibers. A resistively heated platinum wire furnace provides the heat with standard fiber-optic positioning equipment to secure the fiber. The method does not require computer control and has the advantages of low cost, fast sample turn-around time, and the ability to concatenate multiple tapers on a single fiber. Experimental results demonstrating repeatable taper formation and the wavelength filtering property of the tapers is shown. Issues of varying the taper shape are addressed and measurement methods of the physical and optical characteristics are presented. Limited control of the taper symmetry is discussed, and recommendations for enhancement at the cost of simplicity are included.